The Holy Grail of MS Exercise
Just as with all other aspects of MS, each person's tolerance for exercise and ability to work out is different. Many of us need to be careful of a rising body temperature, which eliminates many cardio options. For some, balance and stability is a limiting factor for safety reasons. Strength can also be an issue when selecting your best form of exercise; while we want to build and maintain it, it's hard to find a starting point if you don't yet have it.
Growing up I was an athlete. I played soccer from the age of four through high school, with the majority of those years being at a competitive level. Even after high school I continued to play in recreational adult leagues to stay in shape and continue my love of the sport. After a hip injury during a game that required surgery, my surgeon (shout-out to Dr. Ellman!) informed me that it was time to retire unless I wanted to see him again for the other side eventually. This was my first experience of struggling to find a new exercise, but eventually I caved and got into running as a way to stay in shape leading up to our wedding. Now for some MS patients, running is a great option; it keeps you limber, builds strength and endurance, and gives you an excuse to be outside. When my symptoms really started making themselves known and I was diagnosed, it became clear running was out of the question. For me, heat sensitivity leads to nausea and dizziness, but also numbness and weakness in my limbs - really not what you're after on a run. So with my go-to officially unavailable, it was time to find a new workout option.
I'm sure for many of you with MS, everyone and their mom has recommended yoga to you. "It lengthens your muscles!" "It can be so relaxing!" "It strengthens your core!" Yeah, yeah, yeah - you know what else it does? Bores me to tears. Now I'm not here to tell you you shouldn't try yoga; maybe you'll love it, maybe you already do, maybe it'll be the perfect exercise for your lifestyle! For me however, I found yoga about as engaging and interesting as taking a nap.
So how can you get all of those benefits without the boredom? Enter what I consider to be the holy grail of MS exercise: Pilates. Invented by Joseph Pilates a couple hundred years ago, Pilates holds some similarities to yoga while - in my opinion - being a little more active in the workouts. It still promotes the importance of breathing, concentration, and posture, but tends to get you moving a little more with extra focus on strength that I always felt I was missing when doing yoga. Pilates can be done on a mat, which is great for at-home workouts, but if you can swing it reformer Pilates is amazing. Now unless you have a few thousand extra dollars burning a whole in your pocket to buy your own reformer, reformer Pilates does require going to a gym or studio, but let me tell you it is worth it. I lucked out that shortly after my diagnosis, a new Club Pilates location opened five minutes from our house; the studio has very quickly become my favorite place to me. (Club Pilates Cherry Hills - y'all are the best!) Whether the day brings spasticity, stiffness, muscle cramps, chronic pain, or just a bad mood, 50 minutes of Pilates and I feel like a new person.
Reformer classes allow you to use the reformer machine to strengthen and lengthen muscles, while also working in some incredible stretching. There are even classes built around center and balance which is yet another way to improve stability for those of us who may be a little wobbly some days. Another aspect I love about these classes is that a lot of the instructors have various medical backgrounds, deal with their own chronic ailments, or are willing to customize the workouts around your needs or limitations. My studio has an instructor who's a nurse, one who is a physical therapist, and one who is involved in natural healing strategies; all of them are incredibly knowledgeable and always give modification options for each exercise we do to ensure everyone is working at their own pace and avoiding injury.
Some of you are probably looking at the picture of a reformer and thinking, "What the hell is that and what kind of torture are you trying to submit me to?" TOTALLY FAIR. Reformers were part of what had intimidated me and kept me from getting into Pilates sooner. I promise you, they are fair less scary than they look. You spend the majority of the time laying on the carriage, which is really great if you have issues with your neck or back because they just get to relax and hang out. Straps are used for both arm and leg exercises, as well as really great stretches. The footbar is stable and allows you to push off of it for stretching and strengthening work, but also is an option for resting positions too. The springs allow you to adjust the resistance of the carriage to fit your needs; fewer springs provides lighter resistance, and if you're feeling strong and ambitious you can load up on springs for a greater challenge. ALL of these components are explained by your instructors throughout class, and most of the time they do all the adjusting for you so you can just focus on relaxing and working out. Scroll down for a video of the Pilates reformer in action!
Now I won't lie - Pilates memberships at a studio are not cheap. I had to rework my monthly budget in order to afford it, but I can honestly say it's been worth every penny to get my body feeling better, stronger, and more stable. Plus, most studios, including Club Pilates, will give you a free intro class so you can test it out before committing to any membership! Not sure you want a full membership? You can play by the class too to get a taste for awhile and see if it's the right fit for you. If you try a reformer class and don't feel like you need that aspect, you also can take on mat Pilates at home for the price of a guided DVD, or for free with online videos! I've found those are a good option for days that classes don't fit in my schedule or I just want an extra stretching session. However you choose to do it, if I could make one recommendation in the world of exercise, it would be that everyone at least give Pilates a try, because if it feels as helpful to anyone else as it does for me, that's a major win!
For those of you interested in reading more about Pilates and MS specifically, here are some great articles I've found over time:
How Pilates could help people with MS
A Journey with Multiple Sclerosis and Pilates
The Special Benefits of Pilates for People with MS
And as promised, reformer in action!
Still scared of the reformer and would prefer to try Pilates out mat-style at home first? Here are some of many options you can order online:
Pilates For Beginners & Beyond Boxed Set
10 Minute Solution: Pilates for Beginners
Pilates - Beginning Mat Workout
Growing up I was an athlete. I played soccer from the age of four through high school, with the majority of those years being at a competitive level. Even after high school I continued to play in recreational adult leagues to stay in shape and continue my love of the sport. After a hip injury during a game that required surgery, my surgeon (shout-out to Dr. Ellman!) informed me that it was time to retire unless I wanted to see him again for the other side eventually. This was my first experience of struggling to find a new exercise, but eventually I caved and got into running as a way to stay in shape leading up to our wedding. Now for some MS patients, running is a great option; it keeps you limber, builds strength and endurance, and gives you an excuse to be outside. When my symptoms really started making themselves known and I was diagnosed, it became clear running was out of the question. For me, heat sensitivity leads to nausea and dizziness, but also numbness and weakness in my limbs - really not what you're after on a run. So with my go-to officially unavailable, it was time to find a new workout option.
I'm sure for many of you with MS, everyone and their mom has recommended yoga to you. "It lengthens your muscles!" "It can be so relaxing!" "It strengthens your core!" Yeah, yeah, yeah - you know what else it does? Bores me to tears. Now I'm not here to tell you you shouldn't try yoga; maybe you'll love it, maybe you already do, maybe it'll be the perfect exercise for your lifestyle! For me however, I found yoga about as engaging and interesting as taking a nap.
So how can you get all of those benefits without the boredom? Enter what I consider to be the holy grail of MS exercise: Pilates. Invented by Joseph Pilates a couple hundred years ago, Pilates holds some similarities to yoga while - in my opinion - being a little more active in the workouts. It still promotes the importance of breathing, concentration, and posture, but tends to get you moving a little more with extra focus on strength that I always felt I was missing when doing yoga. Pilates can be done on a mat, which is great for at-home workouts, but if you can swing it reformer Pilates is amazing. Now unless you have a few thousand extra dollars burning a whole in your pocket to buy your own reformer, reformer Pilates does require going to a gym or studio, but let me tell you it is worth it. I lucked out that shortly after my diagnosis, a new Club Pilates location opened five minutes from our house; the studio has very quickly become my favorite place to me. (Club Pilates Cherry Hills - y'all are the best!) Whether the day brings spasticity, stiffness, muscle cramps, chronic pain, or just a bad mood, 50 minutes of Pilates and I feel like a new person.
Some of you are probably looking at the picture of a reformer and thinking, "What the hell is that and what kind of torture are you trying to submit me to?" TOTALLY FAIR. Reformers were part of what had intimidated me and kept me from getting into Pilates sooner. I promise you, they are fair less scary than they look. You spend the majority of the time laying on the carriage, which is really great if you have issues with your neck or back because they just get to relax and hang out. Straps are used for both arm and leg exercises, as well as really great stretches. The footbar is stable and allows you to push off of it for stretching and strengthening work, but also is an option for resting positions too. The springs allow you to adjust the resistance of the carriage to fit your needs; fewer springs provides lighter resistance, and if you're feeling strong and ambitious you can load up on springs for a greater challenge. ALL of these components are explained by your instructors throughout class, and most of the time they do all the adjusting for you so you can just focus on relaxing and working out. Scroll down for a video of the Pilates reformer in action!
Now I won't lie - Pilates memberships at a studio are not cheap. I had to rework my monthly budget in order to afford it, but I can honestly say it's been worth every penny to get my body feeling better, stronger, and more stable. Plus, most studios, including Club Pilates, will give you a free intro class so you can test it out before committing to any membership! Not sure you want a full membership? You can play by the class too to get a taste for awhile and see if it's the right fit for you. If you try a reformer class and don't feel like you need that aspect, you also can take on mat Pilates at home for the price of a guided DVD, or for free with online videos! I've found those are a good option for days that classes don't fit in my schedule or I just want an extra stretching session. However you choose to do it, if I could make one recommendation in the world of exercise, it would be that everyone at least give Pilates a try, because if it feels as helpful to anyone else as it does for me, that's a major win!
For those of you interested in reading more about Pilates and MS specifically, here are some great articles I've found over time:
How Pilates could help people with MS
A Journey with Multiple Sclerosis and Pilates
The Special Benefits of Pilates for People with MS
And as promised, reformer in action!
Still scared of the reformer and would prefer to try Pilates out mat-style at home first? Here are some of many options you can order online:
Pilates For Beginners & Beyond Boxed Set
10 Minute Solution: Pilates for Beginners
Pilates - Beginning Mat Workout
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